Our adventure into town - by foot! And other adventures...

Dear Friends,

It's been a very busy past few days! Sorry for the lag in blogging! We'll try to catch you up with all we have been doing since our last post.

On Wednesday Nick started to teach the junior secondary school girls. A little background - this Rafiki Village in Malawi was originally just a vocational secondary school for girls. It has since grown into what it is today - a full fledged village with housing for 84 children of all ages, starting with babies of 18 months - but the girls' secondary school still exists. In addition to the vocational training, the girls now receive instruction in all secondary subjects, including math, science, English, Chichewa, and MUSIC! Nick has taken on this task for the next couple of weeks. The girls are reviewing basic music theory and beginning to sing in 2 and 3 part harmony. There is no piano here, and the only keyboard we have is a roll out one. (you should google this marvel of technology if you don't know what a roll out keyboard is.) Nick is doing the best he can with a capella arrangements and hymns. He usually plays guitar during class, too. So far the girls seem to be having a blast.

Friday was a very important day for the Kindergarten class here at Rafiki. It was their 100th day of Kindergarten! There was a big party to celebrate, complete with ice cream sundaes, popcorn, music, party hats and party favors. Rebecca and Sandy Lu assisted the Kindergarten teacher because there was so much extra work to be done for the party. This was also an important day for Rebecca because it was her last day of observing Kindergarten before taking over as the Kindergarten teacher next week! Madam Susan, the regular teacher, has gone to the United States for a 4 week break. Rebecca will be the substitute teacher for the next week, until Rafiki's 3 week vacation starts. Rebecca is thrilled to have this opportunity. The kids are so precious and so smart. Check out the adorable pictures taken at their "100 Days of Kindergarten party."

100 Days of Kindergarten Party!

Bright enjoying his ice cream

Eves and her ice cream

The class getting ready to go home for the day.

On Saturday we took a trip with Paul (ROS) and Andy to the "Typha Market," the fabric and clothing market in Mzuzu. Nick, Rebecca and Paul bought some wonderful African fabric and went to the tailor shop to have traditional Malawian garments made. The prices were unbelievable - about $15 for 10 meters of fabric, about $12 for Rebecca's outfit, and about $3.50 for Nick's. We will model those for you online once we pick them up!

The tailor and his sewing machine. Note the foot pedal!

This afternoon Sandy Lu, Fred and Andy (mini-missionaries) and Susan (ROS) went to the airport to return to the United States. After church it was pretty quiet around here. We decided it would be a good time to take a little adventure - we went into the city of Mzuzu - by foot! Most locals walk hours a day to get to and from work or the market, etc. As we've said before, most people do not have cars, so to get to work, school, the market, and church, everyone has to either walk or take a bike. There are many employees of Rafiki who walk an hour each way to work, and some who walk two hours. Anyway, we wanted to experience what that must be like for the Malawians, and we thought it would give us a chance to see the Malawian people outside of the gate up close and personal. The walk down the M1 highway to Mzuzu was about an hour. This highway is so funny because cars and trucks go down it about once every two or three minutes, but the shoulder of the road is always packed with pedestrians and bikers. We were greeted by numerous children who either laughed at the mazungas, ran home screaming "mazunga!" or followed us for a time, very interested. We also saw some of the Malawians who work in Rafiki, including Connie and her children Mercy and Praise. (See picture below.) We greeted many people on the road in Chitumbuka, and as always, they were very warm and friendly, usually laughing at our attempt at their language.

Connie and Baby Praise. BTW - Connie delivered her own baby in her hut and cut the cord herself by the light of a cell phone.

Once we got to town we slowly perused the "old market," which now only seems to have second hand clothes from the Unites States for sale. We walked down the road to the "new market" and walked around for about half an hour. We bought some tomatoes, onions, garlic, and a nice straw basket. Rebecca also bought a tin cooking pan that is so typical of Malawi. It is nothing more than sheet tin pressed into a round pan shape, but most people living in huts cook in these, or carry produce to and from places. We have plans for an Anniversary cake to go in this pan! :-)

Hand made tools for sale at the market. Up close, you can see that these tools are made from old pipes and bolts, along with other scraps of metal and wood.

The basket vendor

We then walked to the grocery store and bought a couple of sodas (in glass bottles, of course), a couple of candy bars, and 4 bananas. We started to walk home, but quickly got very tired. We stopped for about 10 minutes to watch a kids "football" game. (soccer) When we started to get back on the road, we were followed by a Malawian man who wanted to "be our friend." Unfortunately, as kind and warm as the Malawians are, you have to be skeptical of this sort of behavior. Malawians are so incredibly poor, and when they see a "mazunga," especially an American, they assume that we are extremely rich, and they see it as an opportunity to get some money. Indeed, after about 15 minutes of getting to know our new friend, he started to hint about his poverty and his lack of money for school fees. He asked for our phone number (which we did not give,) and he eventually left. As it began to get dark and we picked up the pace, we were met by another man who had similar motives. He actually lives in a house right outside of the Rafiki gate, so we walked the rest of the way home with him. He too wanted our phone number, and offered to give us a chicken. (a very high honor.) You have to feel sorry for these men, who seemed to have such loving hearts - but desperate needs call for desperate measures. We do not believe that simply giving these people money is a help. We choose to minister to them by being friendly, and supporting as many local people as we can by buying lots of hand made goods and produce. You just can't do everything.

A coke and new hand made basket. 450 "Kwatcha," about $3.20, for the basket, and 35 kwatcha for the coke - $.25.

football!

Tomorrow starts another week. Nick will be on his own for the primary school music classes, as Rebecca will be tied up in Kindergarten all morning. He will be teaching the secondary girls in the afternoons, as well as continuing the "gazebo music time." It is going to be a busy week for us. Please pray that God will give us creative energy for the week, and that we can continue to be His hands and feet in this village, for the workers, Mamas, and Aunties, as well as the children.

We love you all, and we really appreciate the encouraging comments and prayers you have been sending our way. Praise the Lord for the work He has done in Africa, and for allowing us to be a tiny part of His huge plan for these children. It is amazing to think that He has knit them in their mothers womb, and counted the hairs on their heads, just like other children. He has a loving plan to prosper and grow them, and we get to walk along side of them for a short time. God is awesome, and He can move mountains!

In Christ,

Nick and Rebecca

P.S. We thought you'd enjoy Nick's attempt to carry the laundry on his head, as the Mamas and kids do...